GameSalad Creator

Developing a video game is no longer something only an entire studio of programmers and artists can achieve, thanks to all the modern technology that packs everything you might need to build and release something on your own. Hence, whether you are a seasoned developer or just an ambitious fellow, you can easily put your vision into practice.

GameSalad Creator is a tool that should allow virtually anyone to have a go at the video games industry, regardless of any previous experience or familiarity with a coding language. Hence, although the results are obviously pretty basic and not very compelling, you can still get something interesting done, or at least challenging enough to get people interested.

In essence, the application is a framework that allows you to create games for a variety of platforms and devices, depending on your target audience. However, instead of programming the components and linking them to the visual elements, you can use a drag & drop interface, which is obviously much simpler to put into practice. Granted, it doesn’t have the same power, but it works for all practical purposes.

Since the gameplay mechanics are bound to be very basic and straightforward, your escape can come in the form of a stunning visual appearance, albeit in 2D. With a bit of imagination and a lot of artistic inclination, a great atmosphere can be created using nothing but static imagery. Naturally, animations can be implemented as well, so you can make things look and feel more interactive.

As far as the interface is concerned, the main window is split into different sections, all of which have a particular purpose. Hence, you can browse for useful files in your project, arrange the logical operators to create an action, and view a specific graphic element at the same time. It can get pretty crowded from time to time, but things get easier to handle once you are familiar with the application.

All things considered, GameSalad Creator certainly cannot compete with the heavyweights in this niche, such as the Unreal Engine from Epic Games. However, it is a lot simpler to learn and put into practice while the results are perfect for the casual mobile market, which can yield sensational results.